Letter to the Speaker of
the House of Representatives and the President of the Senate Reporting on the
National Emergency With Respect to Panama

April 8, 1988

Dear
Mr. Speaker: (Dear Mr. President:)

Pursuant
to section 204(b) of the International Emergency Economic Powers Act, 50 U.S.C.
section 1703, and section 201 of the National
Emergencies Act, 50 U.S.C. section 1621, I hereby report that I have exercised
my statutory authority to declare a national emergency and take the following
measures:

(1)
Block all property and interests in property of the Government of Panama that
are in the United States, that hereafter come within the United States, or that
are or hereafter come within the possession or control of persons located
within the United States, except for transactions that are authorized by, or on
behalf of, the recognized representatives of the Government of Panama as
certified by the Secretary of State;

(2)
Prohibit all direct or indirect payments or transfers from the United States or from any U.S. persons or subsidiaries
in Panama to the Noriega/Solis regime.

The
prohibitions are effective immediately and are subject to regulation by the
Secretary of the Treasury.

I
am enclosing a copy of the Executive Order that I have issued making this
declaration and exercising these authorities.

I
have authorized these steps in response to the unusual and extraordinary threat
posed by the actions of Manuel Antonio Noriega and Manuel Solis Palma, to
challenge the duly constituted authorities of the Government of Panama. In
taking these measures we have acted in cooperation with the authorized
representatives of the Government and in support of the efforts of the
Panamanian people to foster constitutional, democratic government in Panama.

The
steps taken today follow the previous measures we have taken in coordination
with the authorized representatives of the Government of Panama, including the
decision to deposit United States Government payments owed Panama in an account
established at President Delvalle's request at the
Federal Reserve Bank of New York, and removal of trade preferences under the
Generalized System of Preferences and the Caribbean Basin Initiative. These
further steps reaffirm our commitment to democratic government in Panama and our belief that
Noriega would best serve his country by complying with the instruction of
President Delvalle to relinquish his post.

The
people of the United States and the people of Panama have shared a long and
mutually productive relationship, exemplified by the historic Panama Canal
Treaties. The United States has been, and remains,
committed to fulfilling faithfully its obligations under the Panama Canal
Treaties. We are prepared to resume our close working relationships with the
Panamanian Defense Forces once civilian government and constitutional democracy
are re-established.

Sincerely,

Ronald
Reagan

Note: Identical letters
were sent to Jim Wright, Speaker of the House of Representatives, and George
Bush, President of the Senate.